Sports | Swimming and Diving

Senior swimming star to cap off decorated career at NCAAs

Now that he’s created a name for Columbia swimming in the Ivy League, it’s time for Adam Powell to do the same for himself.

The senior qualified for the NCAA National Championships due to his impressive performance at the Ivy League Championship meet, where he helped the Lions notch a third place finish behind Princeton and Harvard. Now Powell will hit the water one last time as he heads to Minneapolis this weekend to swim in the 50 free. To qualify for the Zones, the senior swam the event in 19.62 seconds, which is currently tied for 12th in the NCAA.

This is not Powell’s first appearance in the NCAAs. Last year, he finished 34th in the preliminary race and was unable to advance to the finals—so it came as no surprise when he qualified for his senior season. This year, however, expectations are higher.

“Adam has been thinking about this meet ever since he climbed from the pool at last year’s NCAAs in Columbus, Ohio,” head coach Jim Bolster wrote in an email. Bolster believes Powell will perform well at the event, especially after having had two and a half weeks to train specifically for this race.

No matter the outcome, Powell has had an extremely impressive season. The NCAA Zones are the metaphorical icing on the cake.

“Adam has had an amazing year to date and the NCAA meet is the pinnacle of college swimming” Bolster wrote. “It has been his quest ever since he arrived on campus to make a name for himself at the highest level.” It would seem that Powell has succeeded—at the Ivy Championship meet, he secured the Harold Ulen Career High Point Swimmer Award in recognition of his strong performance through his entire swimming career.

Now Powell has one final opportunity to make waves in the world of college swimming. “We think he has the goods to get the job done in Minnesota and we are looking forward to watching him,” Bolster wrote.

The contest will be held at the University of Minnesota between March 24 and 26. The event will kick off at noon.